Category Archives: Electrocution

Here in South Florida, much of my practice as a lawyer is devoted to construction injuries, as well as car accidents or other accidents occurring at or near construction areas. A major component to construction is often times electrical hook-ups or connections. Once the construction is complete, those electrical connections are still present, but it is the responsibility of the contractor or owner of the premise to install safeguards that prevent access to those electrical devices. This is especially important in areas that will have public access, including condominiums or hotels.

This past weekend my law firm retained a client that suffered second degree burns after coming into contact with a solid metal panel enclosing a hose. Yet, at the time of the injury, it was unclear as to whether electrical devices were being stored under that panel. The young child and her mother were swimming at their condominium pool when the toddler walked over and up onto to the unenclosed metal area. Immediately upon contact, the child suffered serious burns to her hands and feet. The extent of the damage has yet to be determined.

As the child’s lawyer, a lawsuit was immediately filed in Miami alleging injuries resulting from the negligence of the condominium. In this instance, the injuries were clearly a result of the child coming into contact with an extremely hot surface — causing second degree burns. In my practice, however, I frequently come across clients that need a lawyer here in South Florida after suffering injury by electrocution. While the child’s burns were not caused by electrocution, her injuries run parallel to those suffered by electrocution victims.

As a North Miami construction lawyer that sues for electrocution injury, you must look for the following symptoms to help determine whether you or someone you know was in fact electrocuted: (1) skin burn; (2) numbness and/or tingling; (3) muscle contractions, pain, or weakness; and (4) headache and hearing impairment. Now, these are not the only injuries that occur from electrocution, but if your child or a loved one is potentially injured by electrocution, then this is a good place to start.

If you or someone you know was injured by electrocution in South Florida, then please contact us today.

As a Miami personal injury lawyer who sues construction companies for negligence, news that two construction workers electrocuted on the job are suing for their injuries is not shocking to me — no pun intended.

The news broke this past weekend when a lawsuit was filed by the two injured construction workers for injuries sustained while working on a project on Beale Air Force Base for the United States government. The construction workers had been manipulating reinforcement bar, or “rebar” for short, as part of a larger scale project on October 17, 2011. According to the allegations of the lawsuit, this project took place near an electrical substation on the air force base.

While working on the construction site manipulating the rebar, one worker was electrocuted from a shock originating from the electrical substation. Additionally, the other worker had witnessed the electrocution first hand — seeing flames engulf the body of his co-worker, which left him with no choice but to extinguish the fiery blaze that took over the worker’s body. Thankfully, the construction worker that fell victim to this electrocution survived, but suffered major burns to half his body — including third degree burns. The lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California on July 25, 2012 against the United States of America.

Naturally, after a significant construction site injury to a worker by way of electrocution, as seen above, a lawsuit undoubtedly follows claiming wrongful conduct of the construction site supervisor. In many instances, negligent conduct of the site supervisor is alleged by the injured construction worker. Note: this of course may not be the case in Florida due to Workers’ Compensation Immunity (see post from August 18, 2012).

In most cases of alleged construction site negligence, the supervisor of construction workers has a duty to ensure the reasonable safety of workers performing certain tasks on a project site. Additionally, the supervisor must take all reasonable steps necessary to prevent injury to construction workers.

Now, when construction site accidents occur and lawsuits follow, the site supervisor often is to blame for breaching the duty of care owed to his or her construction workers. What is a breach you may ask? Simply stated, a breach, in legal terms of course, is failing to do something that you should have done – or– doing something that you should not have done.

Lastly, this breach must have been the cause of the injury suffered by the construction worker. In other words, the injured construction worker must prove that the damages he or she suffered were a direct result of the breach of the duty owed by the construction site supervisor to his or her workers.

This often turns into a lengthy and contentious battle for south Florida personal injury lawyers to overcome, as construction companies are represented by some of the top law firms in the country. However, it is a fight that is worth fighting by those injured on construction sites to ultimately receive the compensation that they deserve.

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As a lawyer who sues construction companies, I find it disturbing that fatal accidents continue to occur during construction projects. I am extremely saddened by the news that a 38 year old construction worker in Duluth, Minnesota fell victim to a deadly electrocution. The 38 year old had been working on a home in Duluth just prior to emergency crews and local police arriving on scene. However, upon arrival at the scene, the construction worker was unconscious, not breathing, and had no pulse. An electric blast took that young man’s life.

Simply stated, electrocution results when a person is exposed to a lethal amount of electrical energy. The major types of electrocution hazards in construction consist of the following: (1) contact with overhead power lines; (2) contact with energized sources (i.e. damaged or bare wires, defective equipment or tools, and other “live” parts); and (3) improper use of extension and flexible cords. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, electrocution was the fourth leading cause of construction site death in 2005. For the most up-to-date statistical data, please visit the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics website.

Often times, construction workers injured from electrocution on a job site are not the result of carelessness on the part of the construction worker. Rather, the construction company itself or the operator of the construction site is to blame. Yet, it is the construction worker that is frequently exposed to this dangerous amount of electrical energy.

If you or someone you know was injured from electrocution please contact us today.